CCU Student Quick Guide Revision: 3/6/2019

Intro… Welcome the CCU Student Quick Guide We’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for choosing to learn more about California Coast University. We know that one of the key components to success is having the right educational tools. We are proud to offer the tools to help our students meet their educational and life- long learning goals. The University was founded on this promise; and we are committed to keeping it. Revision: 3/6/2019

If you have any questions, please contact us for assistance! Getting Started To help you get a basic understanding of what it’s like to be a CCU student, the Student Services Department has put together this CCU Student Quick Guide. We hope you will find it useful and informative in answering many of the questions you have about the University, the enrollment process, your course requirements, how you complete your program, various options you have, and in general how things work at California Coast University. If you have any questions, please contact us for assistance! Revision: 3/6/2019

California Coast University Connecting To California Coast University Click here to log in Coast Connection is the student information portal that lets you stay connected to California Coast University. Through the portal, you’ll be able to check your grades, order course materials, rent textbooks, submit your work, send messages to the University, and find valuable resources. Revision: 3/6/2019

My Academic Plan From the My Academic Plan tab, you can view the list of courses required for your degree program, check your unit examination grades, and see if your writing assignments has been received and scored. This tab also allows you to complete your unit examinations, complete your challenge examinations, and schedule/complete your final examination. Revision: 3/6/2019

Specialized Training, Experiential Credit, Study Guides, and Challenge Examinations To complete your certificate or degree, your Academic Plan will show the work you have already completed and what you have left to complete. Your plan might include the following: Transfer credit for academic work you completed at another college or university. Specialized training and/or experiential credit for professional training or experience. (Associate and Bachelor’s students only.) Study Guides or Challenge Examinations for coursework you will complete at CCU. Revision: 3/6/2019

Specialized Training If you are completing an associate or bachelor’s level degree program only, you may be awarded elective credit based on the specialized training you have completed. Specialized Training Credit is awarded to students who have completed training as a part of their professions. To earn credit for specialized training, students must complete an Undergraduate Request for Elective Credit Based on Specialized Training form and provide official documentation detailing the total hours and types of training they have completed. (Examples of specialized training include: Military training, POST, Professional development activities, nursing training, etc. Students should submit any type of professional training for consideration.) Revision: 3/6/2019

Experiential Credit If you think you have an opportunity to receive experiential credit, please review the following: Experiential credit may be earned only in the major field of study (core courses) and only at the associate and bachelor’s level. To earn experiential credit, students provide a detailed explanation of any specific occupational experience, training, or expertise they have that is equivalent to the content normally covered in a given course. Students may contact the Student Services Department for additional information. (Examples include: an information technology professional might have the professional experience to earn experiential credit for BAM 225 – Information Management, or a human resources manager could earn credit for BAM 411 – Human Resources Management, etc.) Revision: 3/6/2019

Study Guides Study Guides are developed based on a required textbook and serve as a guide for the course material. Each Study Guide will contain a: Course syllabus, learning objectives, resources, pre-tests, self-tests, case studies, key words, chapter overviews and summaries designed to help you master the course material. To measure your learning, you will complete a combination of multiple choice examinations and writing assignments. Upon completion of the examinations and writing assignments, you will be provided feedback to show you how you’ve done. Revision: 3/6/2019

Challenge Examinations Based on experience, students may be assigned Challenge Examinations for some of their courses. A Challenge Examination is an actual course and 3 credits are awarded upon completion. A Challenge Examination consists of 100 multiple choice questions and requires a textbook. If you are not happy with your grade on a Challenge Exam, you may repeat the course with a Study Guide. Revision: 3/6/2019

Textbooks Once you know what textbook you need (which can be found in the Library Rental tab, once that course has been released), you may obtain it through California Coast University or through an alternate source. If you choose to obtain your textbooks through us, we offer a rental library for your convenience. To help you with the costs of textbooks, our rental fee is $30.00* for a 120 day period. Each textbook requires a $50.00 refundable deposit. *Rental fee is subject to change. Revision: 3/6/2019

Library From the Rental Library tab, you can find your required textbook information and rent or renew textbooks, view your rental history, view your library account, and refer to the library frequently asked questions. Revision: 3/6/2019

Completing Courses Once you’ve downloaded your Study Guide and ordered your textbook, it’s time to get started. To complete your course and receive credit, you will need to submit the following for grading and evaluation: Business, Criminal Justice, General Studies, Health Care and Psychology Students complete the following requirements for each course: PreTest (25 multiple choice questions) - This examination does not count toward your final grade, but helps us to establish your base of knowledge at the beginning of the course. Four Unit Examinations (25 multiple choice questions each) Four Writing Assignments (pass/no pass) One Final Examination (100 multiple choice questions) Education Students complete the following Requirements for each course: PreTest (25 multiple choice questions) – (M.Ed. students only) Four Unit Examinations (Writing Assignments only) One Final Examination (Multiple choice examination) Dissertation (Ed.D. students only) Revision: 3/6/2019

Note: You can re-take Unit Exams once for no charge. Taking Unit Exams For Business, Criminal Justice, General Studies, Health Care and Psychology students: Depending on the course and delivery method, the exam may be administered in one of three different styles: 1. Printed - Printed exams can be mailed or faxed to us. 2. Online (Older Course Revision) Submit Answers Only. 3. Online (Newer Course Revision) Randomized Questions. 1. Printed 2. Older Revision 3. Newer Revision Note: You can re-take Unit Exams once for no charge. Revision: 3/6/2019

Writing Assignments For Business, Criminal Justice, General Studies, Health Care and Psychology Students: After each Unit Examination, you will need to complete a Writing Assignment. Evaluated on a pass/no pass basis, these assignments offer you the opportunity to apply the knowledge you have learned through the course. For Education Students: Each Unit Examination consists of writing assignments (essays) only. Each Unit Examination comprises 20% of your course grade. For the Writing Assignments, you will find helpful information in the Study Guide and on Coast Connection in the Resources Section – including how to format your essay, tips for writing an essay and sample essays to make sure your work is on track. Hopefully, you will utilize these resources. From the My Academic Plan tab, you will be able to select a course in order to submit your Writing Assignment. Once you select a course, select Take Essay Exam to submit your essay for evaluation. Revision: 3/6/2019

When Do You Take The Final Examination? Business, Criminal Justice, General Studies, Health Care and Psychology Students: After you have successfully completed the PreTest, four Unit Examinations and submitted the four Writing Assignments, it is time for you to take the Final Examination. Education Students: After you have successfully completed the PreTest and the four Unit Essay Examinations only, it is time for you to take the Final Examination. You will find the Final Examination Scheduling Form located toward the end of each Study Guide. You can also submit your request via Coast Connection: Log in  Select My Academic Plan  Select a course  Choose electronic or print  Select a proctor if required  Click Submit. Additional information on choosing a proctor is in the Study Guide. Revision: 3/6/2019

My Account Page From the My Account tab, you can sign-up for paperless statements, make a one- time credit card payment, check balance, print statements, company reimbursement form, and payment request form), download accounting forms (i.e., automatic payment authorizations, request transcript, view proctor information, get tax statements (1098-T), and/or change your billing or shipping information. Revision: 3/6/2019

My Messages To keep in touch with you, we will send you messages through the Student Portal regarding your program. On this page you will receive messages regarding all your course activities, grades, faculty feedback, etc. In addition, you may also use the “Create A New Message” tab to contact us. This will allow you to send a message to testing, faculty, accounting, the library, the registrar, and to student services. Revision: 3/6/2019

Term Calendar Some students must complete their programs based on designated terms. If you are required to use a term (i.e. V.A. students, company paid students, military, etc.) please refer to the Term Calendar. In Coast Connection, you will find the tab for Term Calendar. On this tab you are able to view the semester dates as well as view the holidays we will be closed. Revision: 3/6/2019

Your Graduation When you are ready to graduate, you will need to submit the Petition for Graduation form to the Registrar’s office. (Available on the Student Portal). You may be awarded your certificate, associate, bachelor, master or doctorate degree when: All official transcripts listed on your application have been received by California Coast University.   You successfully completed all requirements in your program of study – as noted on your academic plan. You have an overall grade point average of C (2.0) at the undergraduate level and B (3.0) at the graduate level. You have satisfied all financial obligations. You have been enrolled a minimum of: Sixteen weeks for a certificate program; one academic year (9 months) for a degree program (excluding doctorate’s); 3 years for a doctorate degree. Revision: 3/6/2019

Contact Student Services! We’re here to help you. What Do You Do If? … You fail a course? … You want to re-take a course for a better grade? … You lost your answer sheets? … You lost your course materials? … You want to extend your library book? … You have questions? Contact Student Services! We’re here to help you. Revision: 3/6/2019

If you need more information, or have any questions, Thank you for your interest in California Coast University. We would love the opportunity to help you meet your educational goals. We hope this CCU Student Quick Guide has been helpful and we wish you much success! If you need more information, or have any questions, Call (888) 228-8648 | Email admissions@calcoast.edu Or Visit Us Online www.calcoast.edu Revision: 3/6/2019